How Many Avocados Is It Safe To Eat Per Week?

It’s no secret that avocados are freaking amazing: They taste like heaven, are technically fruits, and can be enjoyed on toast, in smoothies, with eggs, on sandwiches, and more. When it comes to avocados, the possibilities seem endless.

But you can have too much of a good thing. While avocados are nutrient-dense foods, they’re also high in calories and fat. That begs the question: How much is too much when it comes to avocados?

Registered dietitian Sonya Angelone, a spokeswoman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, says it’s best for the average person to keep their daily avocado fix to half a fruit a day.

Here’s why: While avocados are a great source of fibre, vitamin E, folate, and potassium, they also contain plenty of fat—even though it’s “good” mono-saturated fat. (The average avocado has about 250 calories, and 21 grams or more of fat, says Angelone)

All that fat definitely serves an important purpose. “The fat in avocados helps increase the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins and other healthy plant compounds,” Angelone says. “They can also lower inflammation, lower the insulin rise after meals, and help you feel more satisfied and more likely to eat less at the next meal.”

But the fat and calories still count toward your daily fat quota, says Julie Upton, R.D., cofounder of nutrition website Appetite for Health. If you eat a 2,000 calorie diet, you should plan on having no more than 30 grams of fat a day, she says, noting that a “serving” of fat is five grams and 45 calories. “Women on an average diet need about six fat servings per day—or the amount of fat in one avocado,” she says.

Sure, you could eat an entire avocado and limit your fat intake for the rest of the day, but that’s not quite realistic. Instead, Upton recommends thinking of your avocado in terms of fat servings—one-fifth of a medium avocado is one fat serving—and take it from there. “It’s a matter of how you want to allocate your daily fat servings,” she says.

Like most foods, you’re probably fine to have more than half an avocado a day here and there. But regularly OD-ing on avocados can add up—and that can lead to weight gain, Angelone says. “Probably more than one avocado per day is excessive, especially since it contributes so many calories,” she says.

If you love your avocados, experts say you can feel pretty good about having them daily. Just, you know, keep it within reason.